3 Philadelphia Principals Fired In Test Cheating Scandal

School District of Philadelphia headquarters, near Broad and Spring Garden Streets. (File photo by Mike DeNardo)

By Mike DeNardo

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – The Philadelphia School District fired three principals Thursday night, as part of an investigation into cheating on standardized tests.

Heads are rolling in the Philadelphia test cheating scandal. The School Reform Commission last night fired three principals who were determined to have roles in manipulating the results of standardized tests. Principals Deidre Bennett, who had been at Huey Elementary, Michelle Burns formerly of Tilden Middle, and Marla Travis-Curtis, the principal at Lamberton Elementary, were fired.

Superintendent William Hite says, “There were tiers, or classifications, of behaviors. And terminations were the result of those actions that were the most significant.”

And the discipline isn’t finished. Investigators say dozens more administrators and teachers have been implicated.

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Mike DeNardo, a veteran of KYW Newsradio for more than 30 years, covers a broad array of news stories for KYW. He specializes in stories about education and the schools.
DeNardo has won the prestigious Edward R. Murrow Award three times — in 2008...